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Bob DeRosa

@bobderosa.bsky.social
2.1K followers 1.1K following 573 posts

Writer of movies (CLASSIFIED, KILLERS, THE AIR I BREATHE), TV (WHITE COLLAR), and audio fiction (CATCHERS, VIDEO PALACE). bobderosa.com bobderosawriter.substack.com

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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I LOVE these thoughts on writing from @finnwritesstuff.bsky.social: "The point isn't productivity for capitalism's sake. It's about momentum, both career-wise and soul-wise. Writing one thing, publishing one thing, can be the beacon that brings you back to yourself."
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Always fun using a movie I've written for Vulture's Cinematrix game, especially when it's the late great Catherine O'Hara in KILLERS!
Screen shot of an online game were you use movie titles that fit two parameters - in this case, the parameters were actress Catherine O'Hara and comedy and the intersection is the poster for the movie KILLERS.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I find it interesting that every time I write a post for (the site that rhymes with cub-stack) and I feel it's too personal, too vulnerable, those are the ones that people seem to connect to the most. Come for the screenwriting career thoughts, stay for the painful honesty. Link in my bio!
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
If there’s one thing I know for sure about the film & TV business, it’s this: It’s easy to leave. I should say I'm not leaving, but the ease of stopping hangs over every work day. What keeps me going? Find out here: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/force-of-w...
bobderosawriter.substack.com
Force of Will
If there’s one thing I know for sure about the film & TV business, it’s this:
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Watched the Emmy's and I can confidently say my dreams have changed. Sure it'd be nice to win a big award someday, get on stage and thank the people I love. But for reals, the absolute best would be seeing an amazing performer win and thank me for the words they got to say. That's the new dream.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
The only writing advice you need today is from @jamiattenberg.bsky.social's wonderful newsletter: "We always need to be forgiving ourselves a little bit. Because this shit is hard."
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
After an inspiring first visit to @laworldcon.bsky.social where I met so many amazing writers and readers, it was exhilarating to wake up this morning to an acceptance from @crowkeys.bsky.social - a lovely publication that I've long wanted to be a part of. Can't wait to share my new sad ghost story!
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Sitting at a big table with a bunch of writer friends, all of us working on our stuff, in a beautiful place that my wife designed, while Dolly plays over the speakers. Life is wonderful and heartbreaking, every day, all the time.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Trying to make anything in the entertainment industry means knowing what your threshold for pain is. We all wish this weren't true. But it is. More here: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/threshold
bobderosawriter.substack.com
Threshold
Most of my screenwriting career is writing scripts on my own.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Post a perfect album from the 90s that isn’t Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam or Alice In Chains
Cover artwork for Concrete Blonde's 1990 album Bloodletting
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Amazing thread about why some choose to stick in out in a brutal business that never gets any easier. Because telling stories matters and it alway will.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Where do ideas come from? In the case of my latest short story, it was a mix of the biggest loss of my life, an old TV show I loved, and a random conversation on a beloved podcast. Find out more about my Old Code here: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/old-code
bobderosawriter.substack.com
Old Code
Where do ideas come from?
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
My latest published fiction is a sci-fi ghost story made with my entire heart. Check it out here: theworldswithin.net/hollow-vision/
theworldswithin.net
Hollow Vision - The Worlds Within
By Bob DeRosa Jax didn’t believe in ghosts, even when she woke up in the middle of the night to find her dead boyfriend standing at the foot of her bed. She blinked in the dark, her mind still swimmin...
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
I attended the single test screening of my first movie and when the moderator was eliciting feedback, the guy sitting right in front of me said the dialogue was "banal." Check cleared though, so fuck that guy.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Multiple celebrity run-ins, embarrassing myself twice with the same producer, and that one meeting where the director didn't wear a shirt. All these memories and more in my first Quarter Century in LA: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/quarter-ce...
bobderosawriter.substack.com
Quarter Century
25 years ago, I moved from Orlando do LA.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
100% this. I'm sick of being sold the "inevitability of AI." We can choose the world we want to live in.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
25 years ago I moved from Orlando to LA to focus on my screenwriting. I had no savings and one acting gig lined up. It's been a crazy journey since then, so many ups and downs, but I live in a house I got with money I made from writing which is something I never take for granted. 1/2
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
Second story published this week! This is actually a reprint of one of my favorites with a title that tells you everything you need to know. literallystories2014.com/2026/06/05/h...
literallystories2014.com
How to not keep a Vampire out of Your House (in Eight Easy Steps) by Bob DeRosa
STEP 1 – When the undead thing scratches at your window and asks if it can come in, say no. STEP 2 – When the thing says something that stirs your soul and awakens your senses, and when…
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
My supernatural noir story "Last Case" was published in the brand new mystery magazine Vegas Heart Moon! Not sure why there's a bear image attached, but it sure is cute. vegasheartmoon.com/last-case/
vegasheartmoon.com
Last Case
by Bob DeRosa <br><br> I sleep on the couch in my office so there’s no avoiding you. The first tentative knock on my office door wakes me. I’m still in m...
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Had so much fun at the Books & Booze pop-up at Idle Hour in North Hollywood this weekend. It was basically a Scholastic Book Fair for adults. I went with my fiction-writing group and lived out my dream of browsing books while enjoying a tiny old fashioned. Heaven!
Me with a tiny cocktail standing in front of a table filled with used books for sale.Me and three friends standing in front of a bar that looks like a giant whiskey barrel.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
Jami Attenberg's amazing 1000 Words Of Summer starts today! Thousands of us are writing a thousand words every day for 2 weeks straight. I'm adapting a beloved unsold script of mine into who knows, maybe a novel? It's not too late to join and it's FREE (or contribute a few bucks for charity).
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Got a request for a general meeting & for the first time since Covid, I was given the option of zoom or IN PERSON. I took the in person. I wanna drive! And park! And check in with an assistant! And get a bottle of water! And meet a real person and talk about making stuff! (I miss the little things).
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
How's your day going? Me, I just submitted a short story to a publication I like and I MISSPELLED MY OWN NAME IN THE SUBJECT LINE! So yeah, doing fine.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
After six years of writing and submitting short stories, I decided to do some accounting. bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/the-number...
bobderosawriter.substack.com
The Numbers (short story edition)
I recently made a post across all my social media platforms that had some of the most likes and re-posts I’ve ever received.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
I needed this quote today from the amazing @sarahgailey.bsky.social: "Do what you can. Care for yourself and the people around you. Believe that the world can be better than it is now. Never give up."
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Love this quote from @pftompkins.bsky.social about making a living in show biz "Things would come and go but there was always the thing in the back of one's mind, that something will come along, it always does. Now I don’t think you can say that. I think you have to be the thing that comes along.”
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
I got a short story accepted recently that's been rejected 16 times. I've been trying nearly 4 years to find it a good home. I came close a couple times, but I finally got the yes. And at a lovely publication, too! A great reminder: keep writing, keep submitting, don't quit.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
Spent a week in Scotland with my favorite person celebrating some dear friends, roaming castles, eating all the food, drinking all the whisky, and now I'm back to write some stories and make cool shit with my friends. So deeply grateful for all of it.
My lovely wife and I standing in front of Dornoch Castle in the highlands of Scotland.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Taking an online break for a bit. Here's a one-eyed kitten falling asleep on my arm to remind you that there are good things in this world. Take care, all.
Our one-eyed kitten Hopper, asleep on my wrist while I'm typing.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
I got fired off a project recently. It's happened before, it might happen again (though I always hope it won't). This isn't a "woe is me" post, more of a "here's a side of the business that's inescapable." #scriptsky More here: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/3-short-st...
bobderosawriter.substack.com
3 Short Stories About Getting Fired
I got fired off a project a few weeks ago.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
I was completely surprised to find out from one of the writers at that recent #VirtualHappyHour that an old Tw_tter thread of mine ended up on R_dditt and seems to have struck a chord with up-and-coming screenwriters. Link attached if you wanna check it out. #scriptsky
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 26/03/2026
Started the day teaching my final class for a TV pilot-writing class here in LA. Ended the day with a 2 hour #VirtualHappyHour with a bunch of great writers. I'm exhausted, but I love talking shop and sharing what I know about the craziness that is the film biz. At least we're all in this together!
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Let's hang out (virtually) and talk about screenwriting. TONIGHT!
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
This is gonna be fun!
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Books and the people who read them make the world a better place.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 21/02/2026
My screenwriting career by the numbers: I've written 39 feature scripts Made money on 10 4 were assignments 2 were optioned but never sold 1 was sold but never made 3 were sold and made 2 out to financiers with attachments New one out to producers Currently working on #40 There are no shortcuts!
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
I start with the logline. Every time. It's not easy or fun. But when you get a good one, one that makes me people lean in and say, ooo tell me more - there's no feeling like it. And the confidence that comes with knowing my core idea is rock solid makes all the tough days that follow bearable.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
I've had dreams come true. And plenty of dreams that crashed and burned. And then there's a specific one about the Eccles Theater in Sundance, which now will never come true as this is the last year in Park City. More here: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/dreaming-o...
bobderosawriter.substack.com
Dreaming of Sundance (and other things)
When I first moved to LA, nearly 25 years ago, I had the same dreams that many new screenwriters have.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
I was invited to partake in a zoom writing session this morning, so I hung out on the couch and polished a new short story while this little guy fell asleep on my wrist. Not a bad start to the day.
Our one-eyed siamese asleep while resting his chin on my wrist.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Incredible event last night at the Frankenstein exhibit with @realgdt.bsky.social doing a Q&A moderated by Barry Jenkins. The design work on display was stunning & hearing Guillermo speak of his creative process was exhilarating. I understand now how he inspires hundreds of artists to do their best.
Barry Jenkins asking Guillermo del Toro a question in front of a beautiful projected image from his movie Frankenstein. A costume worn by Jacob Elodi as Frankenstein's creature.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
My often-partner in crime @benrock.com is directng a new horror short with a fantastic team, co-starring the legendary @yurilowenthal.bsky.social! Check it out and toss 'em a couple bucks if you're able. It's gonna be a bloody good ride! www.kickstarter.com/projects/the...
kickstarter.com
THE ULTIMATE BREAKUP - Short Film
Horror/Zombie/Drama Short Film
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 04/01/2026
I remember when Black Mirror was considered science fiction...
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 01/01/2026
I'm walking into 2026 like this. Not sure if I'm gonna be the one-eyed little cat giving hugs or the three-legged big cat taking em. Either way, let's go.
Our one-eyed siamese Hopper hugging our three-legged black cat Chidi. It's really cute.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
Every year I do a writing year-end where I list everything I've written/accomplished and wow, for a year that felt like hot garbage, with very little professional news to speak of, I'm surprised how much I got done in 2025. 1/4
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
Love this quote from the wonderful Courtney Maum, which totally captures the me I try to present in my newsletter and social media: "I write to you as someone who has had big wins and some dreams realized, but who has had her heart crushed along the way."
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
After multiple stops and endless traffic all over the valley, I can confidently say that everyone in Los Angeles has either had it up to here or is deeply sad. I think I'm going to redo my weekend to do list. Now my main goal is to let a little dog or cat fall asleep on me. And that's enough.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Tough times in the entertainment business lately. Despite all that, someone suggested I was thriving. The reality? I'm doing what just about everyone is doing...hanging on by my fingernails. More here: bobderosawriter.substack.com/p/the-path
bobderosawriter.substack.com
The Path
In trading emails with a writer friend recently, I did the normal writer catch-up thing which was to give a quick summary of what I’ve been working on.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
If you know me, then you know two of my favorite things in entertainment are Zooey Deschanel and assassin stories. Today, finally, it all comes together in my new short story. www.jerseydevilpress.com?page_id=9120
jerseydevilpress.com
Zooey Deschanel Was a Professional Killer
Bob DeRosa Zooey Deschanel killed her first man when she was twenty-two. She was on location in North Carolina filming her indie break-out All The Real Girls when her handler called and t…
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 13/12/2025
I was new to LA, walking in Hollywood, when Peter Greene ran up to me, said, "Hey buddy!" He was looking for the place where he could pay his utility bill. I told him I didn't know, but I was a fan of his work. He said thanks and ran off. #ZedsDead www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie...
hollywoodreporter.com
Peter Greene, ‘Pulp Fiction’ and ‘The Mask’ Actor, Dies at 60
Appearing in a plethora of projects across his career, Greene often portrayed villains on screen.
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Bob DeRosa @bobderosa.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
Watching Aliens in 70mm on a first date in high school, thinking I'd be the manly protector if my date got scared. Instead, I screamed my face off the entire time. Could not have loved it more.
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